Events & Venues News

This year’s Anzac Day Civic Memorial Service to honour New Zealand's servicemen and women promises to be an entertaining yet respectful commemoration for local people of all ages to enjoy.

The service, commemorating the 97th anniversary of the Gallipoli landings by New Zealand and Australian combined military forces, will be held in the Rotorua Convention Centre’s Civic Theatre at 9.30am on Wednesday 25 April, and relayed to a large screen in the Banquet Room.

Rotorua District Council events coordinator Amanda Hohneck says the council’s Events & Venues team received positive feedback following last year’s Anzac service which featured a heartfelt opening song by a local school student and other performances.

“Last year we introduced some lighter entertainment to make it a memorable but not so somber occasion. We got a lot of feedback with people saying it was the best Anzac service they had ever been to, so we decided to go with a similar programme format this year.

“We want to create an atmosphere that also appeals to our younger generation so they can come along and acknowledge the heroic efforts of the New Zealand and Australian military forces, and get an appreciation of what their grandparents and great-grandparents did to enable us to experience the lifestyle and privileges we enjoy today.”

The Anzac Day service will open with a ballad from a yet-to-be-named local singer, while Events & Venues’ technical & safety manager Ray Philpot will perform a guitar solo during the service, with the Evelyn Falconer Jazz Quartet finishing proceedings. Rotorua Brass and City of Rotorua Highland Pipe Band, and accompanist Daphne Christophers, will provide music to hymns throughout the service.

Rotorua’s Trans Tasman flights are taking off with Air New Zealand adding seven Thursday services to its Rotorua-Sydney schedule over the peak summer months.

The Thursday flights will be included in the flight schedule from 20 December to 31 January and are in addition to the existing Tuesday and Saturday Sydney to Rotorua return flights.

The new Thursday flights follow the announcement late last year that jet services will return to Rotorua, with Air New Zealand flying a Boeing 737 between Rotorua, Christchurch and Queenstown six days a week from November.

Rotorua International Airport chief executive, George White, says the Airport team is delighted with the additional Trans Tasman flights, which reflect a significant amount of work to promote the flights. He says it shows the increase in demand for flights to Rotorua and Central Park as a holiday destination.

“Ever since the first flight landed in December 2009, our goal has been to increase the number of Trans Tasman flights between Rotorua and Sydney. The addition of the Thursday services over the busy summer period is an exciting development for the Airport and the local tourism industry,” says Mr White.

Mr White says while a number of passengers travel between Sydney and Rotorua during the summer period for family reasons as they celebrate the festive season, many others are simply choosing to spend their summer break in Rotorua and the wider Central Park region.

“The Bay of Plenty has a reputation as a summer mecca with its beaches, fishing and New Years’ festivities, while others are attracted to the world-class mountain biking on offer in Rotorua’s backyard, tramping in National Park, or the region’s cultural and gourmet attractions.

“There are also a number of internationally-renowned events taking place during this period, and our visitors are making the most of getting to Rotorua and Central Park quicker and faster by flying direct.”

Mr White says work is already underway to promote the additional summer flights

“The summer is shaping up to be an exciting period for the Airport and the local Rotorua community with the additional Trans Tasman flights and the resumption of jet services between Rotorua, Christchurch and Queenstown.”

The New Zealand bid triumphed over strong competition from Japan and Serbia and it will be the first time the international event has been staged in New Zealand.

Around 50 teams of six rafters from throughout the world are expected to compete in the open event, while more teams will compete in the world youth section. The event is also expected to attract a large number of officials, supporters and spectators, and will generate significant international media exposure.

Rotorua will be the base for all participants for the duration of the event, while the competition will take place on Kaituna, Rangitaiki and Tarawera rivers.

The Kaituna River will host the open time trials and head-to-head races, the youth event and open slalom will be on the Tarawera River in Kawerau, and the down-river race will be on the Rangitaiki River.

Rotorua District Council event manager Martin Croft said that it was a spectacular coup for Rotorua to secure another major international sporting event and he was sure the local community would get right behind it.

“I’m absolutely delighted that Rotorua has been chosen to host the event. Our two councils and the NZ Rafting Association, along with many local people associated with rafting, have been working hard over the last six months to secure this event and the big announcement means our efforts have been rewarded.

“Rotorua’s experience in major event management is among the very best in New Zealand. In the last five years alone the city has run seven world events including the 2006 World Mountainbike Championships, 2007 World Water Ski Racing Championships, 2008 World Fly Fishing Championships, 2008 Indo Pacific Tumbling and Trampolining Championships, 2009 World Blind Sailing Championships, 2009 UCI Trials World Cup, and 2010 World Single Speed Championships.

“And of course we successfully hosted three Rugby World Cup test matches last year.

“The world rafting champs promise to be a great event for the region and of substantial economic benefit. We’ll not only get to see the best rafters in action up close, but the championships will provide the opportunity for our area to be promoted  to the world as an top class rafting Mecca.”

Mr Croft says it has also been a great opportunity to collaborate closely with Kawerau District Council on an international event.

“Kawerau has a superb river location for rafting and lots of experience in hosting national kayaking events. Their expertise and Rotorua's history of successfully hosting world class events bodes well for a great experience for participants.”

New Zealand Rafting Association will also run a ‘pre-worlds’ competition in November this year (2012) to trial the rivers and simulate conditions for next year’s world championship event.

The last World Rafting Championships was held in Costa Rica in 2011.